


Diversionary Tactics

by Deannie



Series: Rumors [2]
Category: The X-Files
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 1996-04-22
Updated: 1996-04-22
Packaged: 2018-01-01 16:25:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,166
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1046001
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Deannie/pseuds/Deannie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Scully tries to divert attention from her relationship with Skinner, but gets a response she never expected.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Diversionary Tactics

It had been a couple of weeks since Skinner had returned to work, and Scully was mildly irritated to find that the gossip mill had not yet dropped the subject of her and him. She'd taken to avoiding Skinner whenever she could, which was supposed to solve the problem--if they had no new dirt, the mill usually turned to making another product. Unfortunately, no one seemed to want to drop this particular tidbit, so she was forced to simply avoid all contact. Unless she and Mulder were expressly requested, she was rarely seen above decks.  


Mulder had noticed her shift in routine, but hadn't commented on it. He had a few suspicions himself, and he wasn't sure he wanted them confirmed. He knew all about the rumors flying around the Bureau about her relationship with the AD. One good thing about being considered a non-entity in the company--no one bothered to censor their speech around him. He'd narrowly avoided biting back when a particularly vicious cut about his partner was whispered in plain hearing. It wouldn't help her. It would just redirect the gossip--back to him.  


When the rumors about him and Scully had started, when the X-Files had been closed down, he had pretended to ignore them. The truth was, he had been angry. Not for himself, but for her. It wasn't fair that she was being maligned for their partnership. It wasn't fair that he had actually entertained some of those same thoughts during their first couple of months together. It wasn't fair, period.  


So this time, he stayed out of it. The gossip would blow over, and she would forget about it eventually. She'd probably even laugh about it eventually, as she now did about some of the more outrageous suggestions that had been tossed around when she and he were the focus of it all. Making more of it at this point would only make it last longer.  


Scully herself was simply bothered by what it was doing to the AD. She had never really been bothered by the gossip that floated around about her and her partner. To her, it was simply a nuisance, but something to be expected when a man and a woman worked closely together. Some people were just incapable of understanding the nature of platonic relationships.  


This was something worse, though. This was a rumor about a superior and an agent. The kinds of problems this could bring to him... Harassment--even just the suspicion of it--nepotism... She didn't like the opening it might give any one with designs on upsetting the precarious balance that had been achieved between Skinner and the Syndicate.  


She sat in the office, sipping her coffee and thinking about her possibilities. She had thrown her ideas about the nature of her relationship with Skinner out the window--as she had long, long ago with Mulder. Anything other than friendship had been impossible with Mulder. Only a professional relationship was safe with Skinner.  


So, what could she do to deflate this latest rumor windbag? It had to be subtle... something that couldn't be seen as a transparent attempt to diffuse the situation...  


Something... simple. A smile broke out on her face, just as Mulder walked back into the office.  


"What are you so happy about, Scully?" he asked, still that wonder in the back of his mind about his partner and their boss.  


She wiped the smile off quickly, rising as she did, a sheaf of papers in her hand. "Nothing. Look, I'm going to go make some copies of these autopsy reports. And I have to check on some results in the lab."  


She was out the door with an almost breezy, "I'll be back," that left her partner wondering even more.  


   


Pandrell's face went completely white as a certain young redhead walked into the copier room. "Um, hi, Agent Scully."  


She looked at him openly, a little light in her eyes that made him weak. "Agent Pandrell, how are you?"  


"I'm fine. You?"  


She was smiling a secret grin he'd never seen before. It almost scared him. "I'm fine, thanks." She turned to face him then, and he was sure he'd fall dead on the spot. "I wanted to tell you how much I appreciated your help during that investigation when AD Skinner was shot. You really did some great detective work."  


He tried to stammer something out, but she had her copies now, and breezed out of the room. Oh, God... Way to go, idiot, he thought to himself. No wonder she doesn't want a thing to do with a freak like you...  


Agent Dickenson walked in a moment later, looking over her shoulder at the fast receding Scully. "Looks like she got some action," she said slyly, a lusty look in her eyes that made Pandrell's heart sink. Maybe the rumors were right.  


He'd never have a chance with her now.  


* * *  


Crazy's was filled to bursting, but Scully still seemed to find a small table in the corner. Conversation around her was subdued today, but she didn't worry about it, didn't worry about the stares that occasionally came her way. She was supposedly deep into the magazine before her, but her head snapped up as Agent Pandrell walked in.  


"Agent Pandrell," she called cheerfully as he hunted for a free seat. He gulped visibly and walked over on stiff legs. She suddenly felt a small pang of guilt. But a little harmless flirting was certainly not going to toss the boy off the deep end.  


"Place is crowded today," he observed quietly.  


"Yeah," she replied with a small grin. "Looks like I got the last table in the place." She gestured to the seat before her. "Wanna join me?"  


He looked around suspiciously, though she couldn't imagine what he was looking for. He sat down clumsily. "Um, sure."  


"How are things down in the lab?"  


He tried his best to be professional. "They're fine. Lots to clean up from that Gallton arrest last week."  


"Oh, yeah," she said, her smile growing as she noticed Agent Reardon glancing over. She put a small hand on the boy's arm. "I heard you guys did a great job with that lab run on the murder weapon. Cinched the case, someone told me."  


Pandrell grinned in satisfaction. "Well, we do what we can." There was a look in Scully's eyes that he didn't like--well, no. He liked it a lot, he just thought it was a bit dangerous. He cleared his throat, and tried to put saving his job over winning Scully's attentions. "Um, listen, Agent Scully, no offense--really, no offense. But..."  


Her smile faltered. "But what?"  


"Well, I just..." He stood abruptly. "I just don't want to step on anyone's toes--especially the Assistant Director's."  


Scully could barely breathe as she fought to keep from blushing while Pandrell made a hasty exit.  


* * *  


* * *  
The End  


FANDOM: X-Files  
PAIRING: Scully&Skinner  
RATING: G (Humor)  
ORIENTATION: Het for fun! 


End file.
